Headgear with an adjustable visor

ABSTRACT

Headgear with an adjustable visor capable of being changed to various shapes according to a wearer&#39;s preference is disclosed. The adjustable visor has an elongated core member provided at a peripheral edge of the visor, enabling the wearer to deform, restore, or retain the shape of the visor, and an outer cover that covers the core member.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention

[0002] The present invention relates to headgear with an adjustablevisor, and more specifically to headgear, such as a cap, hat, orsun-visor, having an adjustable visor capable of being changed tovarious shapes according to a wearer's preference.

[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art

[0004] A cap having a visor enabling a wearer of the cap to change thecurve of the visor is disclosed in Korea Utility Model Registration No.20-0282340. A thin metal sheet is attached to the visor of the cap, sothat the wearer may change the curve of the visor by only bending bothsides of the visor up and down in a front view, and the curve may beretained. Therefore, the visor of the cap has limitations in that onlythe entire curvature of the visor can be changed, and it cannot manifestvarious shapes.

[0005] Further, since the thin metal sheet is attached between thefabric cover and the interlining of the visor, it forms a raised portionon the visor, defiling or degrading the appearance of the cap.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0006] Therefore, the present invention has been made in an effort tosolve the above-described drawbacks of conventional headgear.

[0007] It is an object of the present invention to provide headgearhaving an adjustable visor that allows a wearer to bend or change theshape of the visor portion freely to various shapes according to awearer's preference.

[0008] It is another object of the present invention to provide headgearhaving an adjustable visor that is capable of being changed and retainedin the changed shape.

[0009] It is still another object of the present invention to provideheadgear having an adjustable visor that has a smooth appearance or araised shape along its peripheral edges according to the designnecessities.

[0010] To achieve these and other objects, as embodied and broadlydescribed herein, headgear according to the invention includes:

[0011] a headband portion or a crown portion covering a head of awearer; and

[0012] a visor portion projecting from the headband portion or the crownportion to block sunlight, the visor portion comprising an adjustmentmember provided at a peripheral edge of the visor portion, enabling thewearer to deform, restore, or retain the shape of the visor portion.

[0013] The adjustment member preferably has an elongated core memberthat enables the shape of the visor portion to be retained, and an outercover that covers the core member.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014] The accompanying drawings provide a further understanding of theinvention, and together with the Detailed Description, explain theprinciples of the invention. In the drawings:

[0015]FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a cap according to a firstpreferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0016]FIG. 2 shows a sectional view taken along the line A-A of FIG. 1;

[0017]FIG. 3 shows a view illustrating a cap according to the secondpreferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0018]FIG. 4 shows a view illustrating a cap according to the thirdpreferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0019]FIG. 5 shows a view illustrating a cap according to the fourthpreferred embodiment of the present invention; and

[0020]FIG. 6 shows a view illustrating a cap according to the fifthpreferred embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0021] The present invention will be described in detail with referenceto the accompanying drawings. The same reference numerals indicate thesame elements herein.

[0022] Referring first to FIGS. 1 and 2, a cap 1 according to the firstpreferred embodiment of the present invention has an adjustment member,which enables a wearer to deform, change, restore, or retain the shapeof a visor portion.

[0023] The cap 1 has a crown portion 3 covering a head of a wearer, anda visor portion 5 projecting from the crown portion to block sunlight.The visor portion 5 has upper and lower covers 7, 9 on its upper andlower sides, and an interlining 11 provided between the upper and lowercovers 7, 9. The upper and lower covers 7, 9 are preferably made offabric or cloth. In some cases, it is possible that the upper and lowercovers are not provided. The interlining 11 functions to retain theshape of the visor portion 5 in order to block sunlight.

[0024] The visor portion 5 has a peripheral edge that is opposite to anedge joined to the crown portion 3. A core member 21 is elongated alongthe peripheral edge. The core member 21 can be wire like in shape anddeformable. An outer cover 23 covering the core member 21 and aconnecting member 25 connecting the outer cover 23 to the interlining 11are further provided. In the first preferred embodiment, the outer cover23 and connecting member 25 are integrally formed. The connecting member25 is fixed while the upper and lower covers 7, 9 are sewn together.

[0025] The core member 21 is made of metal or a nonmetal material havingplasticity, so that it may be bent by a wearer and retained in the bentshape. The outer cover 23 is preferably made of fabric or syntheticresin having good elasticity to accept the core member 21. Especiallywhen the core member 21 is broken, the outer cover 23 prevents the coremember 21 from protruding outside in order to enhance the safety of thewearer.

[0026] It is noted that the material of the core member 21 or outercover 23 is not limited by the above-described material, and it may beselected from any suitable material. The core member 21 and outer cover23 are preferably formed in thin and elongated shapes to easily join theinterlining 11 along the peripheral edge of the visor portion 3. Theconnecting member 25 is also elongated along the outer cover, and it maybe made of the same material as that of the outer cover 23. Theconnecting member 25 is joined to the interlining 11 by bonding, sewing,or other suitable methods that are adapted for the material of theinterlining and connecting member. FIG. 2 illustrates that theconnecting member 25 is sewn on the interlining 11.

[0027] When a wearer bends or deforms the visor portion 3 of the cap 1into a desired shape, the core member 21 is bent and then retained inthe desired shape. Thus, the interlining 11 or visor portion 5 is alsoretained in the desired shape. The core member 21 is provided along theperipheral edge of the visor portion 5, enabling the wearer to bend thevisor portion 5 freely into any desired shape in any direction, as wellas to change the angle of the visor portion 5. Therefore, the wearer maywear the cap 1 with various visor shapes according to her or hispreference.

[0028] Although a cap with crown and visor portions is implemented inthe first preferred embodiment, it may be embodied as a sun-visorwithout a crown portion, as well as a hat with a brim.

[0029] Referring now to FIG. 3, a cap 1 according to a second preferredembodiment is shown, illustrating an example in which an adjustmentmember of the cap 1 is joined under an interlining 11. The cap 1according to the second preferred embodiment is similar to that of thefirst preferred embodiment, except that a connecting member 25 is joinedunder the interlining 11 along the peripheral edge of the visor portion5 by bonding, sewing, or other suitable methods. Accordingly, any raisedportion is not seen from the upper side, resulting in a smoothappearance of the cap 1.

[0030]FIG. 4 shows a cap 1 according to a third preferred embodiment,illustrating an example in which an adjustment member of the cap 1 isjoined between two interlinings 11. The cap 1 according to the thirdpreferred embodiment is similar to that of the first preferredembodiment, except that a connecting member 25 is joined under the twointerlinings 11 along the peripheral edge of the visor portion 5 bybonding, sewing, or other suitable methods.

[0031]FIG. 5 shows a cap 1 according to a fourth preferred embodiment,illustrating another example in which an adjustment member of the cap 1is joined to an interlining 11. The cap 1 according to the fourthpreferred embodiment is similar to that of the first preferredembodiment, except that two connecting members 25 are formed. Theinterlining 11 is inserted between the two connecting members 25, andthen joined to the connecting members 25 along the peripheral edge ofthe visor portion 5 by bonding, sewing, or other suitable methods.

[0032] Referring now to FIG. 6, a cap 1 according to a fifth preferredembodiment is shown, illustrating another example in which an adjustmentmember of the cap 1 is provided along a peripheral edge of a visorportion 5.

[0033] The visor portion 5 has upper and lower covers 7, 9 on its upperand lower sides, and an interlining 11 provided between the upper andlower covers 7, 9. The upper and lower covers 7, 9 are sewn with twostitch lines 51, 53, resulting in an inner space 55 among the upper andlower covers 7, 9 and two stitch lines 51, 53, along the peripheral edgeof the visor portion 5. Then the adjustment member is inserted into theinner space 55. The adjustment member of the fifth preferred embodimenthas a core member 21 and an outer cover 23 covering the core member,without any connecting member as is in the first preferred embodiment.The cap 1 according to the fifth preferred embodiment has an advantagein that the adjustment member is simply formed and it is not necessaryto join it to the interlining.

[0034] Further, the adjustment member may have a thickness that is thesame as or thinner than that of the interlining in any of the abovepreferred embodiments, when the design of the cap requires a smoothappearance at the visor portion. Otherwise, it is possible that theadjustment member may be thicker than that of the interlining, accordingto the design necessity.

[0035] The present invention provides headgear having an adjustablevisor so that a wearer may change the visor portion to various shapesaccording to the wearer's preference.

[0036] Although the present invention is implemented as a cap in thepreferred embodiments as describe above, the present invention may be ahat, a sun-visor, or other various kinds of headgear having a visorportion, not being limited to the cap. For example, the invention mayinclude a headband and a sun-shield with the core member located on aperiphery of the sun-shield. The sun-shield may take the shape of a facesun visor, a brim surrounding the head or some other shape, such as avisor for the face and a visor for the back of the neck.

[0037] The core member has been shown with a circular cross section.However, the core member can have a different cross section shape, suchas a rectangle.

[0038] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that variousmodifications and variations can be made to the present inventionwithout departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. Headgear, comprising: a headband portion for ahead of a wearer; and a visor portion projecting from the headbandportion to block sunlight, the visor portion comprising an adjustmentmember provided at a peripheral edge of the visor portion, enabling thewearer to one of deform, restore, and retain the shape of the visorportion.
 2. Headgear as recited in claim 1, wherein the adjustmentmember comprises: an elongated core member that enables the shape of thevisor portion to be retained; and an outer cover that covers the coremember.
 3. Headgear, comprising: a headband portion for a head of awearer; and a visor portion projecting from the headband portion toblock sunlight, comprising: upper and lower covers connected to theheadband portion; at least one interlining that is inserted between theupper and lower covers; and an adjustment member, provided at aperipheral edge of the visor portion, enabling the shape of the visorportion wearer to be bent or retained.
 4. Headgear as recited in claim3, wherein the adjustment member is inserted and fixed between the uppercover and the lower cover.
 5. Headgear as recited in claim 3, whereinthe adjustment member comprises: an elongated core member that enablesthe shape of the visor portion to be retained; and an outer cover thatcovers the core member.
 6. Headgear as recited in claim 5, wherein theadjustment member further comprises: at least one connecting member thatconnects the interlining to the outer cover.
 7. Headgear as recited inclaim 6, wherein the connecting member is joined to one of an upper faceof the interlining and a lower face of the interlining.
 8. Headgear asrecited in claim 5, wherein the interlining comprises at least twointerlinings, and wherein the connecting member is joined between theinterlinings.
 9. Headgear as recited in claim 6, wherein the connectingmember is joined to both an upper and a lower face of the interlining.10. Headgear as recited in claim 3, wherein the adjustment member has athickness that is the same as or thinner than that of the interlining.11. Headgear as recited in claim 3, wherein the adjustment member has athickness that is thicker than that of the interlining.
 12. Headgear,comprising: a crown portion covering a head of a wearer; and a visorportion projecting from the crown portion to block sunlight, the visorportion comprising an adjustment member provided at a peripheral edge ofthe visor portion, enabling the wearer to deform, restore, or retain theshape of the visor portion.
 13. An apparatus, comprising: a headband; asun-shield attached to the headband and having a periphery; and adeformable member attached to the periphery of the sun-shield andallowing the sunshield to be freely deformed along a periphery.
 14. Anapparatus as recited in claim 13, wherein said peripheral deformablemember comprises: a wire-like core; and a cover covering the core andattached to the periphery of the sun-shield.
 15. An apparatus as recitedin claim 14, further comprising a connecting member joined to the coverand attached to the sun-shield.
 16. An apparatus as recited in claim 13,wherein the sun-shield comprises one of a visor and a brim.
 17. Anapparatus as recited in claim 13, further comprising a crown attached tothe headband.
 18. An apparatus, comprising a sun-shield having adeformable member located along a periphery of the sun-shield andallowing the sun-shield to be freely deformed along the periphery.